Kanto
Tokyo Tower
How to visit Tokyo Tower: which deck to pay for, whether to book the Top Deck ahead, when to time your visit for the city lights, and an honest worth-it verdict.
Where
Tokyo, Japan
Opening hours
Main Deck: 09:00–23:00 daily, last admission 22:30. Top Deck Tour: 09:00–22:45, last tour 22:15 (tours leave roughly every 15 minutes). Open year-round. Confirm your date on en.tokyotower.co.jp.
Tickets
Main Deck adult ¥1,500 online (~£7), or ¥1,200 (~£5.50) at the counter. Top Deck Tour adult ¥3,300 online (~£15) or ¥3,500 (~£16.50) at the counter. Tokyo Diamond Tour ¥7,000 (~£32.50). Children and high-school students cheaper.
Time needed
45 minutes to 1 hour for the Main Deck; about 1.5 hours if you add the Top Deck Tour, which is a timed, guided slot.
In short
Visiting Tokyo Tower
You don't need to book Tokyo Tower in advance the way you would Sagrada Família — the Main Deck rarely sells out and you can walk up and buy a ticket. Decide between the Main Deck (150m, the cheaper standard view) and the Top Deck Tour (150m plus a guided lift to 250m), then time your visit for dusk, when the city switches its lights on. The tower itself looks better from outside than the view does from inside, so the honest question is whether you want the tower in your photos or want to be standing in it.
How to visit and which ticket to pick
Tokyo Tower has two paid levels, and the choice is the whole decision. The Main Deck sits at 150m and is the standard view — adult entry is ¥1,500 (about £7) if you book online, but oddly only ¥1,200 (about £5.50) if you buy at the counter, so for the Main Deck there’s no reason to pre-book. The Top Deck Tour is a timed, guided slot that takes you by lift up to 250m through a mirrored chamber; it’s ¥3,300 (about £15) booked online versus ¥3,500 at the counter, so here the online price is the cheaper one and it locks in your time. The Main Deck is open 09:00–23:00 with last admission at 22:30; the Top Deck Tour runs to 22:45 with the last tour at 22:15.
Getting there is easy: it’s a five-minute walk from Akabanebashi station on the Oedo subway line (take the Akabanebashi exit), or about seven minutes from Kamiyacho on the Hibiya line. Allow 45 minutes to an hour for the Main Deck on its own, or around an hour and a half if you add the Top Deck Tour. If you only want the Main Deck, skip the online booking, skip the gift-shop floors, and don’t bother with the ¥7,000 Diamond Tour unless the lounge genuinely appeals.
Landmark or lookout? The honest take
Time your visit for dusk — arrive about 30 minutes before sunset so you catch the city in daylight, watch it turn, and then see Tokyo light up. That’s the one window where the view earns the ticket. The catch most people don’t say out loud: the best view of Tokyo Tower is from the ground, not from inside it, because the tower itself is the photogenic bit. From up top you get a wide-but-flat city sprawl rather than a dramatic skyline.
Go up Tokyo Tower because you like the retro 1958 orange-and-white landmark and want to stand inside it, not because you expect the best view in the city. If a single high view is all you’re after, Shibuya Sky or the Tokyo Skytree are both taller and more modern and will beat it. Tokyo Tower is the better photo subject of the three — so the smartest plan for many visitors is to admire it lit up from nearby Shiba Park or Zojoji Temple for free, and only pay to go up if you specifically want the climb.
Planning the rest of your trip? See the Tokyo city guide.
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